Enhancing Breathability of Bio-polyurethane Membrane Films by Hybridizing Them with TiO 2

Abstract: The aim of this work was to enhance the water vapor permeability of bio-poly-urethane thin film, whose essential application is as a non-microporous type of film inbreathable fabrics, by hybridizing it with nano- and micro-sized titania (TiO 2 ). The bio-poly-urethanes were synthesized from 4,4-diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI) and a polyolmixture containing polyethylene glycol (PEG) and soybean oil-based polyol, that is, bio-gly-cols by the hydroxylation of soybean oils upto 25% by weight of bio-polyurethane. Westudied the effect of hybridizing the bio-polyurethane films with hydrophilic nano- ormicro-sized TiO 2 on their breathability by measuring the water contact angle and the watervapor permeability of the films; it was found to significantly enhance the permeability ofthe bio-polyurethane film. Further, nano-TiO 2 was more effective than micro-TiO 2 due tothe higher surface area resulting from nano particles. On the other hand, it is expected thatit would be possible to provide additive functionality to the bio-PU membranes due tophotocatalytic effect of nano-TiO

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